Top and Not Top 10

 After vacation sometimes it is fun recalling the highlights and the parts of the trip that were memorable but maybe for the wrong reasons.  Here's our list:

1. Best Food:
Arthur- Grandma's Saloon and Grill: I ordered the Cajun Chicken Fettuccine.  It had an incredible variety of spices and was very starchy and filling.  It was also the first meal my wife let me eat inside in almost a week since she turns everything into a picnic.  They also had great hospitality (just like my Grandmas.)

Alex- The Angry Trout: We had built up our expectations over three days of backpacking and The Angry Trout did not disappoint.  The grilled fish and sauce was incredible.  I also loved the fact that they had outdoor seating on the dock with a great view of the harbor.

2. Best Museum:
Arthur: Lake Superior Maritime Museum: This museum was so informative and answered a lot of questions we had about shipping on Lake Superior.  I also have a deeper appreciation for all the work the the Army Corp of Engineers does.  There was also an awesome display of engines.

Alex- Split Rock Lighthouse:  Lighthouses are such interesting places to visit and this one included a wonderful museum and guides.  We were both fascinated by learning about Fresnel lenses and the mechanics involved in causing the light to turn.  Split Rock is also in a beautiful location perched atop a cliff.

3. Best Hike:
Arthur-  Tettgouche State Park:  This was the first state park we visited and it left a wonderful impression on us of the Minnesota State Park System.  We dubbed this hike "low hanging fruit" since it was relatively easy and offered amazing views.  We were also impressed by how well the trails were maintained.

Alex- Isle Royale:  My favorite parts of the backpacking trip were the first 20 minutes, along the Feldtman Loop.  We had just arrived on this misty magical island full of moose and other wonders.  We didn't know what to expect and the vegetation and forest was so lush and green.  I also enjoyed the last mile into Huginnin Cove on the rocks overlooking Lake Superior.  The lake was a deep blue-green that afternoon and everything seemed to be covered with a blanket of moss.  Of course this was at the end of our long day so that decreased our appreciation since we just wanted to get to camp. 

4. Best of "On the Road":
Arthur- Fruit Loop:  This was a drive through the orchards that surround Bayfield, WI.  It was interesting since this is a type of agriculture we don't usually see being from Kansas.  I also felt like I was driving down the country roads from the opening scene of Hoosiers.

Alex- Road Kill:  Somewhere in Wisconsin there was a really big raccoon laying on the shoulder of the highway that was road kill.  Someone had come along and tied a "Get Well Soon" balloon to its paw.  Kudos to whoever was inspired to do this and spread joy throughout their corner of the world.

5. Best Fair Exhibit:
Arthur- Sheepdog Trials:  I love watching border collies work and these trials show off the incredible skill and talent these dogs have.  It also reminded my of my favorite border collie, Jasper.

Alex- Lumberjack show: I really enjoyed the exhibition of lumberjack skills.  It was a completely different sporting world that we aren't exposed to here.   Plus I have a thing for plaid shirts.

 6. Best Sunset:
Arthur and Alex- Siskiwit Bay: There was a stunning sunset and we just had a wonderful evening taking the time to watch the light fading across the bay and sinking below the horizon. 

7. Worst Weather:
Arthur and Alex- Wave conditions on the ferry: It only rained one day on our trip and it happened to be the day we had stuff inside planned.  Camping in the light rain that evening was also relaxing on the tent roof.  So we had great weather but the wind the day of the ferry journey made the worst water conditions that we want to ever experience in a boat.  Six foot waves was brutal enough on a sunny day, we can't imagine a cold stormy gale on Lake Superior. 

8. Worst Hike:
Arthur: On the day that we hiked 14 or 15 miles my feet really really hurt from blisters, my arch nemesis.  I also fell off a plank bridge and stepped in the marshy water below soaking my shoe.  Contemplating Paul and Demas took a disproportionate amount of  my brain power too.

Alex:  The last 2 miles of the first day on Isle Royale were brutal.  I was definitely rethinking whether it was a good idea to haul all of my worldly possessions around on my back and call it a vacation.  My "tiny" body was balking about lugging nearly 40 pounds of stuff around in the woods. 

9. Worst Argument/Grumpy moment:
Arthur and Alex: Arthur was a bit of a grumpy gus after grabbing dinner in Duluth at the Northern Water Smokehaus and eating our sandwiches on a bench along the canal.  Arthur says, "In my mind I had visions of meat piled high and reality did not meet expectations."  Overall for traveling 10 days,  backpacking as a couple, and kayaking in a tandem kayak we got along brilliantly.  I guess that is why we like being married. 

10. Worst "On the Road":
Arthur-  The first day was a long 12 hour drive but the worse part was getting up so early in the morning and being still a little tired driving.

Alex- Twin City Traffic: After leaving the state fair we had to go through downtown around 4:30 or 5pm and traffic was slow for about an hour.  Once again so blessed that our commutes don't include rush hour.  I would go crazy.

Interestingly enough our favorite part of this vacation didn't even make it in one of the top 10 categories.  We both agree that we loved kayaking through the sea caves and would love to go back and take a longer kayaking trip.  Of course the best part of the trip wasn't the sights or the activities but sharing the experiences together.  Omnia Vincit Amor. 

The Great Minnesota Get-Together

Since our route to and from the shore of Lake Superior followed I-35 through the Twin Cities we thought we should at least stop and see something.  There is so much to do in this area that I would almost do a separate vacation but making the decision to a single attraction was easy.  We were going to be in town the same week of the Minnesota State Fair-- it was vacation destiny.  My family has gone to the Kansas State Fair every year and recently my parents have started visiting other state fairs in the far off locales of Nebraska and Iowa.  Minnesota is touted as the best state fair in the country so we had to stop and check it out for ourselves.

The nickname for the state fair in Minnesota is "The Great Minnesota Get-Together".  When Minnesotans get-together they take it seriously.  This year they smashed the attendance record with 1.9 million fair-goers.  In one day alone 260,000 people headed to the fair to eat fried food on a stick.  Since we had spent days of solitude in the least visited national park we thought it would provide good contrast to our vacation to attended the biggest, most crowded event in the state too.  The state fair was also a good opportunity to see what makes the state of Minnesota and its people unique.
We were eager fair-goers and navigated some construction to find a park and ride lot.  Even at 8am this sizable high school parking lot was filling up quickly with people who could park and then catch a shuttle bus for a 15 minute ride to the fair.  It was sure nice not to fight the traffic ourselves, especially in an unfamiliar area.

Upon entering the fairgrounds we grabbed a schedule and a map for the day since we didn't want to miss a thing.  Our first stop was the sheepdog herding trials.  Arthur of course has a love for border collies and a sheepdog trial is border collies doing what they love to do most.  These dogs are so intensely focused on moving these sheep through the course.  And it became very obvious that sheep are dumb.  There must be a certain amount of strategy for the handlers as they are trying to predict how a dumb moving object (the sheep) is going to react to a precision instrument (a well trained dog).  The dogs did have to work a little harder than what is portrayed on the movie Babe where all the sheep gladly follows Babe's instructions since he has the sheep "password".   However I am convinced that I need a border collie for Vacation Bible School to keep all the kids in one bunch and nip at their heels until they move to the next location in an orderly manner.

After watching sheep dogs we worked our way across the fair to watch a few shows.  The first was dogs trained to do tricks such as jump into the water chasing a toy, catch Frisbees,  etc.  This was entertaining and fun but after watching border collies herding sheep and reacting to directions for numerous situations a dog shaking paws like it has done over and over in one certain way was a little bit underwhelming in my opinion.  The next show was a lumberjack exhibition.  They had two teams of lumberjacks and lumberjills demonstrate the various events in a lumberjack competition-- pole climbing, logrolling, boom running, ax tossing, and crossbuck sawing.  They also included some historical information about why each event was developed from a real life aspect of the lumberjack's job.  Each year the Lumberjack World Championship are held in Hayward, WI-- a town that we had driven through on our tour of the North Woods of Wisconsin the previous evening.

Our next few stops were the exhibit buildings.  The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (the department that does an excellent job with the state parks) has a large exhibit area that is fairly popular.  There is a fish pond in this area with a variety of native fish.  It was impressive the size of crowd that gathers to watch fish swimming.  I didn't feel like I understood fish enough to appreciate the apparent wonder that the fish were bringing about in our fair attendees.  We stood next to a group of a few Cub Scouts that were maybe first or second grade as they chatted excitedly about fish.  Two middle aged men were on the other side discussing in detail certain qualities of the fish.  Even a "soccer mom" with two preschoolers in a stroller was teaching her kids the differences between walleye and trout with the same importance she would impart other bits of knowledge such as the alphabet.  Minnesotans take their fish seriously.  Other exhibits included inner city kids learning to build canoes, displays about the dangers of non-native intrusive species, interactive presentations about mining resources in northern Minnesota.  There was also a large gallery of taxidermy Minnesota animals, which is the closest we got to seeing a moose.  Another building we really enjoyed was one focusing on sustainability and eco-friendly living.  We learned about water quality, wind energy, car-sharing or biking as primary transportation, and agriculture products that have a lower impact on the environment.

The other exhibit buildings were similar to the Kansas State Fair-- fine arts, 4-H, agriculture, and domestic arts.  I was impressed with the ag building.  It had educational exhibits mixed with the competition exhibits.  Minnesota also has competition classes for largest sugar beets (the are the 2nd largest producer of sugar beets in the country) and for Christmas trees (which is one of the only agricultural areas I have a certain level of expertise).  The birthing barn was also particularly popular.  They also had very nice livestock barns.

By about 4pm I was suffering from sensory overload-- too many sights, sounds, and people.  I was probably more exhausted from a day at the fair than from even our long backpacking days.   We decided to make the journey back to the car and attempt to beat rush hour traffic on our way out of town.  We didn't succeed but it was pleasant enough sitting on the interstate discussing our thoughts from the fair and listening to our audiobook.  We had about a 2 hour drive south to our hotel for the night in Clear Lake, Iowa.  Clear Lake was the only place I didn't print a map for since I thought there would only be a handful hotels right off the highway-- easy peasy.  This was not the case but we did get to see more of the town of Clear Lake than we had intended which wasn't a bad thing.  We ate dinner at a pizza place/sports bar.  The pizza hit the spot and we caught up on the quota of sports we had missed over the past week with the 30 some TV screens around the restaurant.  It was also interesting how just the act of staying in a basic hotel seems very luxurious and is a really treat after a few days of camping.  It makes one appreciate clean sheets, a warm shower, and Full House reruns on TV.

We had a great time at the Minnesota State Fair and were sure glad that they shared their get-together with "a few interlopers from beyond the borders of the Land of 10,000 Lakes" (quote from Star Tribune).  Omnia Vincit Amor.

Sea Kayaking

Sunday morning, we got up and broke camp, excited to hit the high seas in a vessel power by our own strength.  This was the most anticipated part of the trip for me (Arthur).  Changing modes of transportation from feet to kayak was reason enough for excitement, but the coast of Superior looked amazing from the top, I was excited to see what they looked like from the side.

We arrived at our tour's meeting spot and set about gearing up.  They had us try on wet suits for against the possibility of cold seas, which are every bit as tight as they look, but my high spirits were not to be deterred.  The experience about to be had was worth any slight inconvenience as this, and so with wet suit, PFD (personal flotation device, its what all the cool kids are calling their life jackets these days), and water, we loaded into the tour van and headed towards our launch point.

A note of clarification here: you apparently cannot just rent a sea kayak; if you have no experience, you have to go as part of a tour.  This really didn't bother us at all; if someone wants to come along and make sure we don't do anything stupid due to inexperience, that works out just fine.  So far we've had great luck on vacation groups.  I guess the sort of adventures we go on helps to select for the coolest type of people, and this trend held up on this trip.

We arrived on the beach and prepared to head out after a brief tutorial on how to use the equipment.  Alex and I shared a tandem kayak, and the original plan was for me to take the rear seat and be responsible to control the kayak rudder.  We soon discovered that the foot pedals used to operate the rudder could not be set far enough from the seat for my exceptionally long legs, so my competent and wonderful wife had to take over.

We set out, and while we were having a lot of fun, we were struggling quite a bit with steering.  At one point it look more like we were headed out to the islands than trying to hug the coast, but with some help from the guides, we eventually got squared away.

We moved along 3.5 miles of some amazing sights.  Eons of waves battering the coast has carved out a solid rock wall whose contours are a sight to behold.  The water is unbelievable clear; visibility is said to be good for 40 feet down, but I didn't test that idea.  All I can say for sure is rocks that looked like they were only a few feet down couldn't be touched by paddle.

There were many spots where the water had carved caves and tunnels into the coast, and we got to go through a number of them.  One such cave, called the "Cathedral" for its vaulted walls, was very aptly named, but all of these formations truly acted as temples, reminding us that all the earth belonged to a God of beauty and awe.

Paddling was pretty easy for us, if we really wanted to pick up speed, we could quickly move from the back to the front of the pack.  There were a lot of times where we just wanted to move slowly, and during those times Alex provided the lion's share of the power.

We pulled off and had lunch, provided by the guides.  It was all good, but what we both remember most is the smoked white fish.  I've had smoked fish twice now, and both times are spectacular memories, this probably warrants further investigation.

In any case, after lunch, we head back to our launch point to load up again.  By this time Alex had gotten really good at steering, and we enjoyed steering really close to the coast and trying to keep up with the lead guide, who would get well out ahead and wait for the group to catch up.  The sights were still beautiful, and the periods spent waiting were not lost in the quiet contemplation of such majesty.

Alas, we reached the launch point and loaded up.  I had a cool talk with a water conservationist with the Minnesota department of public resources, and it was interesting getting his take on the current and potential future state of agriculture (like I said, really cool people).  After saying goodbye to our group, we did a short drive around beautiful Bayfield, and headed on to Saint Paul.

The drive there was pretty amazing in its own right.  The land we went through was so green, and the little towns we passed was like something out of a Rockwell painting.  Watch the opening scene from Hoosiers, and imagine it more green; that's what is was like.  With the story of the 1936 Olympic rowing team playing in the background, the part of our vacation was on par with much of the hiking we so carefully planned for.

We arrived at our hotel pretty late, but showered up and and grabbed a quick dinner at Jimmy John's.  It was a wonderful day, and we were ending it in a real bed; pure bliss.  Omnia Vincit Amour.

Scenic Coastlines

We headed into Duluth after a peaceful night's rest ready for an easy day of picturesque seaside scenery.  First stop was the Maritime Museum, run by the Army Corps of Engineers.  In what turned into a fortunate miscue, we arrived about an hour before the museum opened.  This allowed us the opportunity to drive around Duluth a little while Alex got directions to Hawk Ridge Sanctuary as a filler activity.

Even as a standalone event, this was actually a pretty neat stop.  Hawk Ridge is an area set aside due to the efforts of the Audubon Society for preserving and observing the local avian wildlife, and the area is stunning.  We didn't walk far along the trails at all, instead, we just stood in the observation area and watched small birds hop and flit among the bushes.  Chipmunks ran around; one succeeded in climbing the metal railing to the small observation area, for what purpose no one, including the chipmunk, could guess; and his trials getting back down were pretty entertaining.  I spent some time trying to take close shot pictures of the tiny birds move about.  It was a peaceful and wonderful time.

Also notable on this side trip was just how many Minnesotans were out using these public spaces.  We passed running and bikers galore on a day many Kansas would be inside.  It got Alex and I thinking about the use of public space to increase public health; whether such policies would work in Kansas or whether demographically Kansans are not as inclined to get out and be active.  I guess some of the healthiest states are also the coldest; apparently its easier to bundle up and go outside than to cool down when its already hot.  But I digress; this was all to say it did our hearts (especially Alex's) good to see so many people out and active.

We then headed to the Maritime Museum, which was pretty awesome.  Ran by the Army Corps of Engineers, this museum had displays describing ship cargo on the Great Lakes, different designs and strategies for shipbuilding through the years, famous shipwrecks, engines, and what the Corps of Engineers do.  I have a friend who works for the Corps, but I had no idea just how important their work is.  There are so many issues to be balanced and so many interests weighing in, and almost all of them involve water.  I'm proud to say I've got a friend on the front lines, and as much as I'm happy with my job now, I'm a little sad I didn't go into civil engineering.

After this, we went to Grandma's (the restaurant, not a matriarch).  It was ranked as one of the best restaurants in town, and very conveniently, it was right next to the museum, my feet were still giving me troubles.  The food was delicious; I had a perfectly portioned plate of Cajun alfredo.  This was perhaps my favorite meal of the trip, and fortified me well for the rest of the days adventures.

Bellies full, we happily made our way to Bayfield, Wisconsin.  First order of business was finding some campground to spend the night.  We originally intended to stay on a campground controlled by a casino, but that turned into something of a side adventure.  We were told at the casino that we'd pay at the campground, so we drove, and drove, and drove 10 miles deep into the woods to the campground, where a sign informed us that we were to pay at the casino.  We knocked at the door of an old camper that said "Office" along the side, but when no one answered, my tolerance for shadiness had been exceeded.  We instead found a campsite closer to town actually run by the city of Bayfield, which was infinitely more satisfying.

Imagine a small coastal city in a Hallmark movie, and you get Bayfield.  The area around it is used for growing apples and berries; and we went on a ride along the "fruit loop."  As Kansas kids, it was neat to see agricultural endeavors for different crops than we'd normally see.  One of the top vacation destinations by Midwest Living, Bayfield is set up for tourists.  We went to the Apostle Island National Lakeshore visitor museum for a while, then just walked around town.  We stopped in at a second hand bookstore, then poked around a small Scandinavian themed knickknack store.  We had some difficulty finding a restaurant for dinner not already filled, but we found a pub that served us some great burgers and fries.  After stopping in at one more bookstore (where I purchased a book about mathematical reasoning) we headed back to our campsite.  The rain that had followed us all day continued to patter on the roof of our tent but we were blissful inside, dry, and cuddled up in our feather sleeping bags with our head lamps and good books before drifting off the sleep.  Omnia Vincit Amor.

The North Shore

Upon opening our eyes from a very deep sleep Friday morning we realized we were sleeping in a real bed, in a real hotel, in civilization.  We lied there just enjoying it all.  We were clean with clean clothes to put on.  We could take a shower and drink all the water we wanted without filtering it.  We also didn't have to get up and hit the trail.  So we didn't.  We rolled over and went back to sleep.

Mid-morning we did finally get on the road after repacking the car and sorting the gear again.  Our first objective was Grand Marais.  We had talked to a couple that were sailing around Isle Royale who were from Grand Marais and they had given us tips on the go-to spots in town.  Our first stop was an art gallery which was full of great art, much of which featured life or the landscapes of the North Shore.  (The North Shore is the coast of Minnesota along Lake Superior from Duluth extending to Grand Portage and the Canadian Border.)  We then wandered out to the marina and Coast Guard station.  The was an area called Artist's Point of craggy rocks that juts out into the lake that we strolled along.  We probably could have spent some serious time here watching the rolling waves and the boat traffic but our main reason for being in town was to eat at The Angry Trout, which opened at 11am, and Arthur didn't want to miss it.   All week on our backpacking trip we had talked about

having our celebratory supper at The Angry Trout and this thought is what got Arthur through a few days.  However our ferry was delayed so we didn't get to eat at The Angry Trout (or anywhere for that mater).  Our one meal the previous day had been a frozen pizza at the ranger station while stranded on the island so we were more than ready for a sophisticated meal.  The Angry Trout is located right on the water and they even have outdoor seating on their dock.  We ordered the fresh fish of the day-- grilled white fish and lake trout.  The boat beside the dock where we were dining was the vessel that brought the fish in that morning.  As we waited for our meal we must have had the look of ravenous wolves as one of the waiters came to fill our water glasses again and asked if we were backpackers.  How he knew I don't know since we were wearing normal clothes and had showered.  Once our sandwiches arrived it was pure bliss to sink our teeth into homemade buns and fresh fish-- another meal we will remember for a long time and well worth the anticipation.

Departing from Grand Marais, I made the executive decision that if (or when) we move to Minnesota this is where we should live.  We meandered down the coastline to Split Rock Lighthouse.  A storm in late November of 1905 ended up damaging or sinking 29 vessels, killing 36 seaman and costing the equivalent of almost $95 million (2015 dollars).  This was called the Mataafa Storm, after the largest shipwreck, and it prompted the building of this lighthouse.  The lighthouse is situated at the top of a 150' rocky cliff made of diabase and anorthosite, two rocks rarely seen at the earth's surface that are particularly resistant to erosion. For the first 20 years of operation the only way to reach the lighthouse was by the water.  All supplies had to be hoisted up or put on a tram line that was built from the dock a few years later.  It is hard to imagine the lives of the three light keepers and their families on this isolated rocky outcropping.   We toured the museum which had displays about shipwrecks, commercial fishing, and how to navigate using lighthouses.  After our previous night on the ferry where I was overjoyed to see the light marking the inlet for the bay signifying our three hour tour was finally over, I have a better understanding off how sailors felt when they finally saw the lights of their home harbors appear on the horizon.  Next we went on a guided tour of the grounds and explored the lighthouse itself.  Arthur was very impressed by some of the engineering components that were needed for the light to function.

It was amazing thinking about how difficult building at the site would be; at the time, materials had to be brought in by boat and lifted by a crane.  They had to get the crane up there by attaching skids to it, securing it to the rock face, and having the crane reel itself in.  The mechanics of the lens, the weight systems ensuring that it turned, the pumping force necessary to get water from 130 feet below, the engines powering the foghorns, these were all extraordinary engineering feats.  The lighthouse light is rotated using the same principles as a grandfather clock, where a falling weight drives the gears that turn the beautifully crafted Fresnel lens.  In this case, the falling weight weighted 6000 pounds and had to be cranked up every two hours by one of the three keepers assigned to lighthouse at any given time.

Our trip down the North Shore ended in Duluth.  Ever since I was a kid my dream was to always grow up and get a job in a cubicle in Duluth.  I'm not sure where my fascination with Duluth started but now I was finally going to get a chance to explore the city.  We made our way down to Canal Park to check out the board walk and get something to eat.  We picked up smoked fish sandwiches at a deli and ate them on the board walk looking over the lake.  While I was enjoying this picturesque picnic Arthur was not.  There is  deli and a restaurant with the same name and my google map printout was for the deli.  Arthur was less than pleased that his meal was a fairly expensive regular sandwich instead of a sit-down meal.  Also after a few minutes on our park bench we were swarmed by a group of noisy, unsupervised high school student which detracted some from the ambiance.  Next we walked down to the lighthouse and saw the Arial Lift Bridge (a Duluth icon).

Our accomodations that evening was a camping spot at Snowflake Nordic Ski Center.  The ski center is home to cross country skiing trails in the winter which they open up for some camping in the summer months.  This worked out well for us since it was on the outskirts of Duluth, not open to RVers so a little bit quieter, and a great price compared to everything else in Duluth on a weekend.  We arrived shortly before dark and set up our tent.  Then like the true campers we are we hung out in the chalet where there was electricity and bathrooms for awhile before heading to bed.  We aren't the campers that needed to build a fire and sit around and enjoy the outdoors-- we had been there and done that on our vacation.  Omnia Vincit Amor.

The Mighty Sea

It was imperative that we be at the Windigo Ranger Station for our return trip to the mainland by 12:00.  Failure to do so could mean missing our boat, interfering with our plans for, among other things, dinner at The Angry Trout, and this would not do.  So, taking extra precautions, we arrived at 9:30 in the morning.

In retrospect, the 5:30 wake-up call was admittedly overkill.  Not that we experienced any adverse effects from it.  We were on the trail by 7:00, and while walking in the cool of the day, listening to the birdsongs that accompany sunrise, on beautiful trails.  The early arrival meant we got to enjoy the amenities of civilization unhurriedly.  Flushing toilets and running water are joys a backpacking excursion will quickly remind you of.  We went up to the camp store and spent some time just enjoying having a bench to sit on, chatting with a retired couple who had sailed to the island the day before, and reading.  Little did we know how much time we had to enjoy the tranquility of the area.

We went down for a ranger program on how island isolation had changed many of the species living there from their relatives on the mainland.  Since it is an island all the animals there had to travel across the lake at some point.  I remember reading about Isle Royale for the first time in my middle school science textbook.  The island is unique since researchers have a naturally controlled lab to study the prey-preditor relationship of wolves and moose.  Moose first swam to the island in the early 1900s.  In fact, one of the park rangers said that even last year a boat saw an object in the water thinking a small vessel was in trouble.  It turned out to be a moose swimming across Lake Superior and he followed it until the beast reached the island.  It is at least 20 miles of open water swimming and why a moose would choose to make that trip is anyone's guess.  The first wolf pack crossed the ice around 1940s.  Currently there are 1300 moose on the island (how did we not see any!).  The wolf population has dwindled to 2 due to interbreeding and the lack of genetic diversity from being contained on an island.  They are currently discussing whether wolves should be reintroduced to the area.  It was a fascinating talk, but unfortunately, it ended with news that our boat was running behind schedule due to rough seas.

Alex and I were able to keep ourselves entertained in the interim; there was plenty to see at the ranger station and we had our books with us to wait by the docks with.  All the same, we were happy to see our ride pull up around 1:30.  It wasn't long before we were loaded up and saying goodbye to the island.  Not long after that, we were saying hello to the island again.

The captain decided the seas were rough enough with 6 foot waves that he thought the best course of action was wait out the weather.  We were told that they'd reassess the situation again at 4:00.  At this point, my only real anxiety was whether this put eating at the Angry Trout out of the question, but there was still fun to be had.  We hadn't eaten anything since breakfast, so we ordered a pizza from the camp store and had a nice chat with a father/son duo who had been kayaking around the island.  We read a little more and poked around the ranger station, then headed down to the dock to hear the captain's pronouncement.

The look of the waves in the bay kind of clued us in on our fate before the captain spoke.  There would be no Angry Trout today, that goal which had kept me going the previous day when my feet hurt so bad.  We planned on reassessing the situation again at 6:00.  In the meantime, a second ranger put on another great talk on the history of Isle Royale's trails to perhaps the largest crowd she'd ever had (talk about a "captive" audience).  It was also the 100th birthday of the National Park Service and we were there to celebrate.  However the staff at Isle Royale wasn't expecting a crowd on a Thursday so they would be celebrating the next weekend. 

Finally, we were set to depart.  It would be interesting to know the captain's mind in all this.  I suspect that the waves we encountered earlier on in the day actually posed no threat to our vessel, that concerns over passenger anxiety and comfort were really the driving force of his decision.  Faced with the prospect of customers having to stay on the island overnight, it would make sense that his decision making calculus would be slightly tilted towards going, again, without any actual threat to safety.  Whatever the case when we reached the open waters of Superior, I couldn't tell the difference between the waves then and when we had turned back earlier that day.

So this was in the protection of the harbor.  We didn't dare have the camera out when we were crossing the rougher waves.

It was a wondrous adventure, with just enough of a sense of danger to make it especially memorable.  For a landlubber like myself, the rough seas inevitably set Gordon Lightfoot's Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald on a continuous loop in my mind.  From my differential equations class, I was aware of rogue waves, which are waves of freakish size capable of sinking very large ships that arise anomalously, perhaps because of the sort of system that can be modeled as a second order differential equation.  With that neat little talk from class that had so absorbed me years ago passing through my mind, every cresting wave seemed pretty ominous until it finally broke.

Oh but it was fun standing on deck and feeling the sea spray on your face.  Being on an unfathomably large expanse of sea and locking into the experience was pretty amazing.  If you've ever stood in your doorway during a particularly awe-inducing thunderstorm, you get a taste of what I mean, but now imagine being so immersed in the storm that it effects the very foundations of where you stand.

Well, for all this talk, we made it back into harbor safely, with the last half hour being a comparatively calm leg with sunset making for a picturesque end.  We headed to Grand Marias and our hotel at about 9:45, exhausted and ready for the convenience of warm showers and soft beds.

Editor's Note:  It was interesting to read Arthur's recount of our ferry journey.  We were standing side by side the entire time but my experience was very different.  Instead of contemplating wave physics I was trying not to get sea sick.  For three hours I stood on the stern deck with a white knuckle grip on the railing.  At first the bracing for the waves and the roll of the boat was like an amusement park ride.  Fun for the first 30-45 minutes with diminishing returns after that.  I kept my eye trained on the horizon to try to convince my mind and equilibrium that everything was normal.  Being 15 miles out to sea meant I was stuck on the boat.  There was no pulling over and stopping because the wind and waves don't stop.  I couldn't get off and swim or walk.  I was helpless to changing this uncomfortable situation.  I had a much better understanding of the disciples and their fear when a storm suddenly came up.  The disciples were at least fishermen with some boating experience.  But Jesus wasn't phased by the wind and the waves.  He spoke and the storm ceased.  The disciples were amazed.  We weren't even in a storm on our ferry ride but I can't fathom the power to stop those relentless waves.    Omnia Vincit Amor.

The first 10 miles were great...

Wednesday was our last full day of hiking.  We had a decision to make-- we could either spend the night at the Washington Creek campground near the ferry docks that is usually fairly busy or Huginnin Cove on Lake Superior known for being a favorite campground on the island.  Washington Creek would be a respectable 10 mile hike while Huginnin would be an optimistic 14.5 miler.  The ranger who set up our permit highly recommended trekking on to Huginnin if we could.  We decided it would be a game time decision but we both knew we would hate to miss out on a challenge or adventure with a big reward at the end.

That morning we woke up after a glorious night sleep in the shelter to a stunning sunrise.  We knew it was going to be a long day so we wanted to get an early start.  Packing up went fairly quickly since we had more space to maneuver in the shelter than our little tent and had a better idea of how to organize our packs.   We hit the trail at 8am with a nice layer of dew and mist on all the foliage that soon drenched us.  The first mile of the trail traced the edge of the bay for some beautiful views.  We did get off the trail in a few sections because the local beavers had made their own trails which were very misleading.  We continued to see sings of moose-- lots of tracks and scat-- but no moose.  However we probably walked by a handful we couldn't see because the vegetation was so thick.  The first trail we were on was an old mining road going up and over a few ridges.  At the turn of the century Isle Royale was home to a logging camp and a few copper mining operations.  It was also a private resort area for several well to do families and home to some fishermen.  Isle Royale is unique in that it is more "wild" now than it was 100 years ago.

Around mid-morning we turned onto the Greenstone Ridge trail.  This trail runs the length of the island and is the most popular with hikers traveling across the island.  We hadn't seen any other hikers in a day an a half and we began to see a person or two about every hour.  Many had just started their journey that morning at the ferry docks and had questions about what lay ahead.  We, having spent two days wandering around the forests and lakes, had street-creed and could give up-to-date trail reports.  The Greenstone trail was fairly easy going since it was gradually headed downhill and more importantly was more highly traveled and had much less foliage to fight through-- such a pleasant hike.  After lunch we were feeling pretty good so we made the decision to push onward to the cove.

A little more than 9 miles into the hike, it was decision time.  Sheltered campgrounds with potable water were only a few steps away, while the higher calling of Huginnin Cove beckoned the purer of heart.  Of course, we were going on, but I (Arthur) definitely found myself contemplating Paul's description of Demas in 2 Timothy 4.  We are told that Demas loved this present world and shake our head sadly at his foolishness.  I found myself sympathizing with him a little; poor guy probably just wanted a warm shower and a Pepsi while Paul was goading him to take up his pack and follow him. 

Once we were on the trail to the cove we were hiking by ourselves again.  With about 3 miles left in the hike, hiking started to become less enjoyable.  Arthur was battling some blisters and somehow despite the laws of conservation of matter, our packs were getting heavier.  The afternoon was fairly warm and we did see more bugs than we had previously.  (All in all there were minimal bugs through the entire trip to Isle Royale which is known for being plagued by mosquito and black fly in the early summer months).

Finally we dropped over the last ridge and the trail was on rock ledge along Lake Superior.  The park ranger told us that this section of the trail was breathtaking.  I'm sure it was but by this point in the afternoon we were out of breath.  Arthur was focused on getting to camp and putting this hike behind him.  I tried to take in as much of the rough, rocky shoreline with the deep blue green water of Lake Superior as I could.

Finally we rounded the edge of the cove and saw the sign post marking the campground.  We found a nice tent site looking over the small cove and set up camp with the energy we had left.  Arthur than took a swim in the cove to cool off and clean up.  We settled in to a wonderful dinner of chicken, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and gravy all mixed together into one mass of calories-- delightful.  Dessert was chocolate chip bar cookies that had held up pretty well jostled in our packs.  After dinner we were treated to a stunning sunset but frankly were so tired we were bedded down for the night moments after the sun sank below the trees.

It had been a long day.  We were hitting our strides finally and hiking 10-12 miles comfortably.  It was just that final three miles that ate our lunch.  We set a new personal record for miles hiked in a day while backpacking with our previous record being around 10 or 11  miles.  As trip planner and promoter of hiking and backpacking adventures, I am very thankful that Arthur didn't stop in the middle of the trail  and refuse to continue with this madness but trudged on without complaint despite large areas of raw skin developing between his toes.  He always says that the thing that first caught his eye about me was that I would be a gal who would go hiking or climb mountains and that was something he wanted to do to.  I wonder if he ever has second thoughts about this but he always hikes onward.  Omnia Vincit Amor. 

Backcountry Kitchen

In grad school a friend asked me where I found a recipe for something I was eating at lunch.  My answer wasn’t from Pinterest or Betty Crocker’s cookbook but Backpacker Magazine.  I figured if someone could make the recipes suggested in Backpacker in the wilderness at 10,000ft elevation then surely with my limited cooking skills I could pull it off in my fully outfitted normal kitchen.  (Side story:  I tried to make some granola bars or something of that nature from a Backpacker recipe.  They flopped and turned out the consistency of plywood.  The only way my roommate and I could eat them was with large amounts of ice cream—waste not, want not.)  When we started backpacking I didn’t realize that a large chunk of backpacking is all about the food.  More cooking—my favorite.  

In preparing for this trip I had to develop a detailed menu for 4 days that was high in calories, light weight, didn’t need refrigeration, and would keep Arthur happy and well feed.  They have pre-made backpacking meals that you can purchase but at $8-10 a piece I decided I could do better.  I am really amazed at the amount of foods on the market that are designed so you just have to add water.  These are highly processed and not a great nutritional value so I never have paid attention before but for backpacking foods that just require boiling water is king.  This included stuffing, instant potatoes, mac and cheese, and noodle dinners in a bag.  Of course most of these included a day’s allotment of sodium in one serving but after sweating all day we look at this as electrolyte replacement.   

The next step was adding protein.  Thank goodness for pouches of tuna, salmon, and chicken.  For breakfast each day we had pop tarts and oatmeal.  Pop tarts are easy and pack well.  I made our own oatmeal packets but will just get instant oatmeal packets next time—not worth measuring out the ingredients for a dozen servings of oatmeal individually.  For lunch each day we had tuna salad on flatbread.  I scored about a dozen packets of mayo from Subway that we would squeeze into our pouch of tuna and scoop it out on our flatbread.  Finding pickle relish packets for our next trip would be great.  Arthur also got some honey packs that McDonalds has for chicken nuggets that we brought to make peanut butter and honey sandwiches but the honey containers didn’t stand up to the abuse of backpacking so we had a sticky mess all over our lunch sacks.  Another good learning experience. 

Over the past few weeks I have fallen in love with dehydrating food.  I borrowed a food dehydrator and have dehydrated bananas, pineapple, tomatoes, and blueberries.  Water weighs a lot so dehydrating food to remove the water makes items much more backpacker friendly.  I loved the addition of dried bananas, blueberries, and pineapple in our oatmeal and trail mix.  Other snacks in our packs included the faithful granola bar, beef jerky, cheese sticks, and jolly ranchers.  

With cooking in the backcountry there are a few differences than in a kitchen.  First is you have to filter all the water.  We used about 3 gallons of water a day which isn’t a lot until it takes about 45 minutes a day to squeeze 3 gallons at a trickle through the filter.  We didn’t want to waste any water doing dishes and you can’t throw out any bits of food into the woods or water sources- it all has to be packed out.  Our answer to this was freezer bag cooking.  I mixed up individual servings of each meal in quart sized freezer bags.  We would boil water to add to each bag, seal it in a cozy I made from reflective windshield sun blockers, and wait about 10 minutes.  Then we would eat the meal right out of the bag and any leftover crumbs were contained in the bag to pack out and no mess in the cooking pot since it was just water.  Another difference is you can’t have leftovers so getting the right serving size is important.  Luckily, hungry backpackers basically inhale everything that even resembles food.  All of our cooking—boiling water—was done on our backpacking stove.  Before we left we did practice several times with the stove to make sure we could prime and light the stove without a problem.  We would hate to end up in the middle of nowhere and not be able to light our stove.  With backpacking most of the time building a fire is not allowed due to the chance of forest fires so the stove is important.  The last difference is that you have to protect your food from critters.  Rodents will gnaw holes in gear such as tents or packs to get at food so each night we put all of our food into a metal mesh sack—it looks like chainmail—and hung it up to keep critters attracted to the smell or food out of our camp.  

While I am normally not a fan of cooking, I was much fonder of “slaving over the hot stove” with beautiful scenery such as a secluded cove.  Also walking 8 hours a day makes a person hungry and hunger is the best sauce.  Our meals were delicious.  Omni Vincit Amor.